Lügenpresse: The lying press and German journalists’ responses to a stigma

Abstract

The term Lügenpresse, ‘lying press’, was used by the German National Socialist Party before and during the Third Reich to discredit the news media and to undermine public trust. By 2014, reports of verbal and physical attacks on journalists and news organizations by individuals calling them Lügenpresse, had again become a frequent feature of the public discourse in Germany. While the term ‘fake news’ is used to similar effect and intent in the United States, Lügenpresse is a historically and politically charged expression of distrust in news media on an institutional level. This research examines the responses and institutional strategies of 27 news editors and executive editors in Germany’s leading broadcast, print and online news organizations to the accusations that they are lying to their audiences. Findings indicate that the reemergence of the term Lügenpresse, has led to considerable self-reflection within institutions, in an effort to counter the lack of trust and to demonstratively better serve the public. The main focus across newsrooms is on improving established processes and on making professional standards and practices more visible to the audience.

Hating journalism: Anti-press discourse and negative emotions toward journalism in Korea

“…In particular, they define themselves as ‘awakened citizens’ representing ordinary Koreans for justice while mocking journalists as the ‘dogs of unjust vested interests’. In addition, the giraegi phenomenon is similar to the ‘lying press accusations’ by German right-wing individuals and groups, given that the verbal attacks in the giraegi discourse were directed at the press as a social institution, not at specific individuals or groups (Koliska and Assmann, 2019).…”

“…Public media criticism is increasingly hostile today and, in extreme cases, violent. This is a worldwide phenomenon, ranging from European countries such as Sweden (Nilsson and Örnebring, 2016), Norway (Figenschou and Ihlebæk, 2019), and Germany (Koliska and Assmann, 2019) to American countries such as the United States (Lischka, 2019), Argentina and Ecuador (Waisbord and Amado, 2017), Asian countries such as India (Bhat and Chadha, 2020), and Korea, the context of the current study.…”

Is the Age of Impartial Journalism Over? The Neutrality Principle and Audience (Dis)trust in Mainstream News

“…Notably, similar accusations have become increasingly familiar in many other Western countries with the rise of new national conservative parties and movements (e.g., Aalberg et al 2018;Eatwell and Goodwin 2018). As a result, questioning the trustworthiness of the media and its impartiality has become central to a type of national conservative politics that positions itself outside of the mainstream "liberal" consensus (Koliska and Assmann 2019;Sehl, Simon, and Schroeder 2020).…”

The Strategic Bias: How Journalists Respond to Antimedia Populism

“…Recently, a few preliminary studies tackled journalists' responses to antimedia populism, almost exclusively in Germany and the United States (Koliska and Assmann 2019; Koliska et al 2020; Krämer 2018). These studies often emphasize the role of journalistic norms—and especially the ethos of objectivity—in journalists' encounter with the populist assault.…”